Individual wheel suspension for motor cars



March 19, 1935. J w LEIGHTON 1,994,583 Q INDIVIDUAL WHEEL SUSPENSION F OR MOTOR CARS Filed Sept. 15, 1 955 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 III/10321011101 March 19, 1935. J, w LElGHTON 1,994,583

INDIVIDUAL WHEEL SUSPENSION FOR MOTOR CARS Filed Sept. 13, 1933 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Inx/enlw J hn Wye lifi'e LeisH'cm Patented Mar. 19, 1935 v UNITED STATES PATENTOFFICE INDIVIDUAL WHEEL SUSPENSION FOR MOTOR CARS John Wycliffe Leighton, Port Huron, Mich.

Application September 13, 1933, Serial No. 689,282

'. 6 Claims. (01. 267-20) The principal objects of this invention are to ends mounted in the hubs 7 and 8 and they are efiectively reduce the unsprung weight in motor threaded into threaded bearing surfaces in the cars, thereby diminishing undesirable and harmcylindrical lug portions 14 and 15 respectively ful vibration, and further, to devise a construcof the brackets 16 and 1'7 respectively which are tion which will operate freely and in which the rigidly secured to the frame 11. 6

bearing surfaces will be entirely free from rub- The struts 9 and 10 swing freely on their threadn squ aks and will eff v maintain their ed bearings, both in the hubs '7 and s and in the lubrication. lugs 14 and 15 respectively. p

A Still further a y important bj ct is $0 Suitable lubricant fittings 18 are arranged cenlO devise a structure which will be veri ea y to 515- trally of the hubs 7 and 8 to direct lubricant into 10 semble. g the threaded orifices between the ends of the strut The principal feature of the invention consists members. vin the novel Structure for pp t t e Veh Suitable lubricant fittings are also arranged frame from the pivotal king bolt bracket whereupon the brackets 16 and 17.

15 by paired angled struts pivotally mounted'in Abracket 19 is rigidly mounted upon the vehicl l5 threaded bearings on the king bolt bracket are. frame 11 midway between the brackets 16 and Piv ally connected by threaded bearings to the 1'7 and opposite to the axle 1. Between the sides frame structure of the vehicle, the load of the of this bracket is mounted a rigid block 20 upon vehicle being suspended on springs interposed bewhich is mounted the squared end 21 of a spiral 20 tween the king bolt bracket and the ,frame. spring member 22. The outer end 23 of this spiral 20 35 that it will be very diflicult to maintain proper tends inwardly toward the frame and carries a 3.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a spring extends upwardly and is formed with a plan view of the preferred form of construction down-tumed hook 24 which engages an upwardand arrangement of parts for carrying this invenly-turned lug 25 formed on the king pin bracket 6.

tion into effect. 1 The load of the vehicle is thus suspended from 5 Figure 2 is a side elevational view. the wheels and king pin bracket through the 25 Figure 3 is a front elevational view. spiral spring 22, and the parallel pairs of strut Figure 4' is an enlarged sectional detail taken arms 9 and 10 swing freely in their threaded bearon the line 4-4 of Figure 1. ing ends.

Figure 5 is a front elevational view of a slight- In the form of structure shown in Figure 5 v ly modified form showing a different form of a bracket 26 is secured to the side of the vehicle 30 spring suspension for the frame. frame 11 and extends outwardly between the strut Numerous forms of individual wheel suspension arms 9 and 10 in central alignment with the. axle for motor vehicles have been proposed, but most 1, and the bottom end of the king pin bracket 6 of these are of a complicated nature and such is provided with an extension arm 27 which exbearing supports without loose play. helical compression spring 28 which engages the In the present invention the axle pin 1 is formed underside of the bracket 26, supporting the frame with an angularly set sleeve 2 which is journalled thereon, while the arms 9 and 10 swing freely.

upon a king pin 3 mounted between the offset It will be understood from this description that no .lugs 4 and 5 of the king pin bracket 6. the parallel strut arms 9 and 10 are simple rods Horizontal hubs 7 and 8 are formed on the of steel having their angled ends threaded to fit upper and lower portions of the bracket 6 and the bearing threads of the frame bracket and the hubs are formed with internal threaded bearking pin bracket. The threaded ends of each ing surfaces extending from end to end thereof, strut are slightly ofiset so that there will be a 5 the threads at the ends preferably flaring outslight tension on each end which will serve to .45

wardly. I maintain the threaded surfaces in snug engag-- A pair of strut members 9 and10 are mounted ing contact.

in each of the hubs 7 and 8 respectively, each The efficiency of threaded bearing surfaces in having obtusely angular crank pins threaded to structures of this type has been'very thoroughly 59 enter thethreaded'bearing portions of the hubs. demonstrated in the silent U shackle which The struts diverge angularly from the hubs '7 and has come into extensive use in the motor car in- 8 and extend horizontally inward toward the vedustry, and with the angularly-disposed struts hicle frame 11. placed in opposed relation to fore and aft strains,

The inner ends 12 and 13 of said struts are a very rugged yet lightweight support is prearranged obtusely angular'and parallel with the sentd. l I be axial thrusts imposed on the bearing assembly on application of a braking effort on the front wheels, and undesirable end play associated with ordinary bearing structures will be avoided.

What I claim as my invention is:--

1. A wheel support for motor vehicles comprising the combination of a vehicle frame having upper and lower pairs of pivot brackets spaced apart and provided with threaded bearing orifices, strut bars having offset ends threaded in said bearing brackets and arranged in converging pairs; the upper pair being arranged substantially parallel with the lower pair, a king pin bracket having a threaded bearing engaging the convergent ends of the upper pair of strut arms and a threaded bearing engaging the threaded ends of the convergent lower pair of .struts, and a spiral spring having one end rigidly secured to the frame and the other end hooked over a projecting portion of said king pin bracket.

2. A wheel support for motor vehicles, comprising the combination with the vehicle frame, a wheel axle and a king pin bracket pivoted thereto, of two pairs of parallel strut arms having their inner ends pivotally mounted in threaded bearings on the vehicle frame with the bearing axes disposed in the fore and aft direction of the vehicle, the outer ends of each pair of struts being converged into substantial axial alignment with each other and engaging the king pin bracket in threaded bearing contact, the threaded bearing engagement of said struts with the frame and king pin brackets serving to retain all of said elements in their co-operative assembled relation and serving further to distribute axial fore and aft thrusts due to braking and minimizing objectionable axial play at the several bearing joints.

3. A wheel support for motor vehicles compris ing the combination with the vehicle frame, of upper and lower pairs of pivot brackets on the frame spaced apart and provided with threaded bearing orifices, strut bars disposed in convergingpairs and having the convergent and divergent ends disposed in threaded crank formation with the divergent ends threaded in said bearing brackets, the upper pair being arranged substantially parallel with the lower pair, a king pin bracket having a threaded bearing engaging the convergent threaded crank formations of the upper pair of strut arms and a threaded bearing engaging the convergent crank formations of the lower pair of struts, and a spring interposed between the frame and said king pin bracket and resiliently supporting the load of the frame, said threaded crank formations being slightly offset and said struts being assembled in the brackets with the slightly offset ends under tension to intimately engage the bracket bearing threads in non-rattling contact.

4. An individual wheel support for motor vehicles, comprising an axle, a king pin bracket pivotally mounted on said axle and having a pair of horizontally disposed hubs arranged parallel one above the other and each having an internal threaded bearing surface, two pairs of struts each having obtuse angled threaded ends threaded into said hubs in threaded bearing engagement and flaring outwardly therefrom, brackets mounted on the vehicle frame having threaded bearing orifices engaging the other ends of said struts in threaded bearing engagement, a spring mounted on the frame between the flaring pairs of struts and engaging and resting upon said king pin bracket, said struts being assembled under tension in said brackets with the respective threaded obtusely disposed ends thereof in nonrattling pressure engagement with the internal threaded surfaces of all of said brackets.

5. A wheel support for motor vehicles comprising the combination with the vehicle frame, a wheel axle and a king pin bracket pivotally connected therewith and formed with parallel struts converging outwardly from the obtusely,

bent ends and each having the outward end bent obtusely in the opposite direction and substantially parallel to the other obtusely bent end, the outer ends of said rods being pivotally mounted in the parallel pivot hearings in the king pin bracket and entered therein from opposite sides of the, bracket, whereby a strong floating assembly of light weight and few parts is provided. 7

6. A wheel support for motor vehicles comprising the combination with the vehicle frame, a wheel axle and a king pin bracket pivotally connected therewith and formed with an elongatedthreaded bearing orifice from the front and rear sides, paired strut members pivotally connected at their inner ends to the vehicle frame and converging outwardly toward said king pin bracket and having their respective outer ends threaded into the common bearing orifice of the bracket from the opposite open ends thereof, and a lubricant fitting connected with said threaded bearing orifice intermediate of the length thereof to direct lubricant to the bearing orifice intermediately between the end extremities of the struts threaded therein to simultaneously lubricate each strut of the pair from its inward end.

JOHN wYcLIFF mrranron- 

